April 8

Births

1941: J.J. Jackson (Soul Singer)

1947: Steve Howe (Guitarist for Yes, Asia & GTR)

1951: Mel Schacher (Bass for Grand Funk Railroad)

1962: Izzy Stradlin (Guitar for Guns N' Roses)

1963: Julian Lennon (Son of John Lennon and Singer)

1963: Donita Sparks (Guitar & vocals for L7)

1964: Biz Markie (Marcel Theo Hall) (Rapper)

1971: Darren Jessee (Drums for Ben Folds Five)

1972: The Pig (No. 2) (Paul Gray) (Bass for Slipknot)

1984: Ezra Koenig (Singer & Guitarist for Vampire Weekend)

Events

1956: The Johnny Burnette Trio makes its TV debut, performing "Train Kept A-Rollin'" on ABC's Ted Mack's Amateur Hour. They will appear two more times on the show, but never win.

1963: John Lennon and wife Cynthia are the proud parents of their first child, Julian, who would go on to have several hits of his own in the '80s and '90s.

1964: The Supremes recorded "Where Did Our Love Go" at Motown Studios in Detroit. The song would become the first of their five US number one singles.

1967: In a move that will have enormous implications for England and soul music, Stax makes its first European stop on its promotional tour, with Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, Booker T. and the MGs, Eddie Floyd, and Arthur Conley performing at London's Hammersmith Odeon.

1968: Petula Clark's first (and only) TV special, entitled simply Petula, airs on NBC, featuring guest star Harry Belafonte performing a duet on an antiwar song she'd written called "On The Path Of Glory." During taping, Clark had reached out to touch Belafonte's arm in a spontaneous gesture, causing the show's sponsor Chrysler to protest, fearing the interracial contact would upset viewers in the American south. As a result, the show is infamous even before it airs: Petula and the show's executive producer, her husband Claude Wolff, respond to the pressure by having all other takes of the duet destroyed so that the gesture would have to be aired. It was, historically, the first interracial contact to be broadcast on American television.

1971: Chicago becomes the first rock group to play Carnegie Hall, in a concert that will be immortalized on their hefty four-disc fourth album.

1972: Written after the 'Bloody Sunday Massacre', in Northern Ireland Paul McCartney and Wings released 'Give Ireland Back To The Irish.' The song was banned by the BBC and the IBA. It peaked at No.16 in the UK and No.21 in the US.

1977: The Damned played at the home of the New York punk scene CBGBS, the first UK Punk group to play live dates in the USA.

1982: New Order's bass player Peter Hook was knocked unconscious during a riot at a gig in Rotterdam.

1985: American songwriter J Fred Coots died aged 87. Co-wrote, 'Santa Claus Is Coming To Town' and the Pat Boone US No.1 hit 'Love Letters In The Sand.' He wrote over 700 songs.

1988: R.E.M. left IRS Records and signed with Warner Brothers records.

1989: For the first time in its 33-year history, ABC's legendary dance show American Bandstand moves to the USA network, replacing longtime host Dick Clark with newcomer David Hirsch. The show would be canceled for good six months later.

1989: Lol Tolhurst, keyboardist and founding member of the Cure, left the band.

1994: Electrician Gary Smith who was working at Kurt Cobain's house in Seattle discovered Cobain's body lying on the floor in the greenhouse. Local radio station KXRX broke the news at 9.40am that the Nirvana singer and guitarist was dead. A shotgun was found next to Cobain's body. A suicide note was found that said, "I haven't felt the excitement of listening to as well as creating music, along with really writing . . . for too many years now". A high concentration of heroin and traces of Valium were also found in Cobain’s body.

1994: The Recording Industry Association of America announced that Pink Floyd's 1973 album Dark Side of the Moon had become the fourth biggest-selling album in US history and had passed the 13 million mark in sales. The album has sold more than 25 million copies worldwide.

1997: American singer, songwriter Laura Nyro died from ovarian cancer.

1998: Rolling Stones guitarist Ron Wood and 11 other passengers are stranded in a boat off the coast of Brazil when its engine catches fire. A boat of nearby journalists, fortunately, rescues the stranded boaters just minutes before the burning engine causes the craft to explode.

1998: Tommy Lee (Motley Crue) was jailed for 6 months after breaking a probation order.

2002: Marilyn Manson denied claims that he was responsible for the death of a woman after a party at his mansion in 2001. Jennifer Syme, a former girlfriend of actor Keanu Reeves, died when her Jeep Cherokee hit three parked cars. Her mother, Maria St John, was suing the singer for wrongful death, claiming Manson was negligent in "instructing the woman to operate a motor vehicle in her incapacitated condition

2008: Babyshambles frontman Pete Doherty was jailed for 14 weeks for violating his probation and for using drugs. Doherty had been given a suspended jail sentence for possession of drugs and driving illegally in October 2007. The singers supervision order had required him to make regular visits to court for progress reports, as well as take part in a drug rehabilitation programme but he missed one appointment with his probation team and had been late for another. The sentence forced Doherty to cancel his biggest gig to date at the Royal Albert Hall scheduled for later this month

2010: Malcolm McLaren former manager of the Sex Pistols, the New York Dolls and Bow Wow Wow died from cancer aged 64. As a solo artist he scored the 1983 UK No.3 single 'Double Dutch'. He set up the fashion store Let It Rock in the late 60's with Vivienne Westwood selling rubber and fetish gear.

2011: Rapper Gucci Mane (real name: Radric Davis) was arrested near Atlanta while visiting his probation officer. He was arrested on a misdemeanor battery charge stemming from an incident in January, DeKalb County Police confirm to The Hollywood Reporter. According to a police report, he picked up a woman at a local mall, invited her out for breakfast and then tried to offer her $150 to stop by a hotel with him. When she refused, he pushed her out of his car while it was in motion. She was taken to the hospital with "soreness and pain."